


Champion

by JeckParadox



Category: One Piece, Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pokemon Fusion, Gen, Pokemon Journey
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-07
Updated: 2019-06-25
Packaged: 2019-11-13 07:32:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18027437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JeckParadox/pseuds/JeckParadox
Summary: Monkey D. Luffy has one goal: To become a Pokemon Master. Setting out to sea at twelve with his Mankey at his side, he plans on conquering the East Blue's Champion, before moving on to the Grand Line. It's a long journey ahead of him, but he wouldn't have it any other way.First chapter initially posted on Sufficient Velocity.





	1. Luffy & Mankey

"Run away!" Ace screamed as he barreled through the forest.   
  
Luffy and Sabo didn't need to be told twice, turning immediately to join him. "What'd you do?" Sabo demanded.  
  
"I tried to catch it!" Ace said in a huff, insulted, "It didn't work!"  
  
"First- what's  _'it'_ in this situation what are we running from?"  
  
The roar, followed by a wave of heat that sent the three brothers ducking just in time to avoid the massive wall of flame pouring overhead, told Sabo all he needed to know. "The  _big_  Arcanine?! Why did you think you could catch it?"  
  
"I threw the apricorn at it! That's supposed to work!"  
  
"You can't just throw a raw apricorn! It needs to be made into a pokeball first." Sabo said, sighing, before glancing at Luffy.   
  
The youngest brother, seeing Sabo's gaze, grabbed the rim of his hat even as he scrambled to get up, his elder brothers following, "I'm not giving up mine! Shanks gave it to me, he said the first pokemon has to be special!"  
  
"The biggest Arcanine in Midway Forest is pretty special, isn't it?" Ace asked, "We could share it!"  
  
"No!" Luffy said, sticking out his tongue, before Sabo grabbed them both by the shirt and yanked them to the side, hiding under a large fallen tree.   
  
Covering his brother's mouths with his hands, he leaned to the side, listening.   
  
_Fump_  
  
The boss of Midway Forest, an massive Arcanine covered in scars, landed gracefully in the clearing they had just been in, and let out a huff. A puff of embers came out with its breath, before the pokemon lowered itself to the ground and began to sniff. Sabo inched away, and urged Luffy and Ace forward as well. All three moved as stealthily as they could, to not alert the monster.   
  
Up until the moment Ace looked back and realized something. "The apricorn." he whispered, looking back. The little red nut had a bit of its stem left, and it had gotten caught in the monster's mane.  
  
"No." Sabo hissed.   
  
"It's the only one we've found in  _weeks_  of searching!" Ace whispered harshly, "We need it."   
  
"It's not worth it Ace." Sabo whispered back.  
  
"No!" Luffy said, suddenly stopping, "We can't just let it take it!"   
  
Sabo and Ace stopped as well, and couldn't catch Luffy in time as he started rushing back, "We worked hard to find that Apricorn!" he shouted angrily, "And you can't just take it from us!" Luffy reached up under his hat, and pulled out the second thing Shanks gave to him. A small green-and-red pokeball.  
  
The Arcanine turned in their direction immediately, and unleashed a fireball at the sound of his voice. His older brothers leaped forward to shove Luffy to the ground, and the fireball once again went over their heads, slamming into the trees behind them, igniting it.  
  
As the blaze rose up behind them, the three brothers had no choice now but to stand and fight.   
  
The creature, seeing their newfound determination, let out a resounding bark that nearly had them falling to their knees and clutching at their ears, then, it moved in to attack.   
  
Luffy was pulled out of the way by his brothers, and then thrown to the side when the Arcanine dived for them. Sabo leaped into the air, and brought down his pipe on the creature's head, but it bounced off without leaving so much as a bruise. Turning quickly, the monster jerked towards Sabo, who could only stare as it bit clean through the metal pipe like it was nothing, iron crunching under teeth.   
  
But as it focused on him, the other two went to work. Ace and Luffy climbed up a nearby tree, before both jumping off, aiming their pipes for the creature's head, hoping to stun it. But the moment they came close, its whole body turned to fire as it rolled away from the attack. The brothers hit the ground hard, and then cried out in pain, as the earth was still blistering hot.  
  
The three humans clumped together, keeping their backs to each other as the Arcanine rolled in a circle around them at high speed, flames billowing from its body. They were trapped, and the boys and Arcanine both knew it. As it was, the ruler of the forest was playing with them, daring them to try and leave through the swirling wall of heat.   
  
They were out of options, it seemed, until Luffy once again raised the green ball. "If I catch him, we'll be safe." Luffy told himself, "He'll listen to us then."   
  
"Luffy, let me do it." Ace said, holding out his hand, "I'm better at throwing."  
  
"No! I have to be the one to do it!" Luffy said, staring at the fire as it went in circles, he pulled back his arm, but then hesitated.   
  
The Arcanine had stopped rolling, the flames coating it vanishing, as it looked away from the boys, and towards a group of trees at the edge of the circle of flames. A howling cry rang out, and a pale white blur launched itself through the wall of fire, and then another, and another.   
  
As they collided with the Arcanine, Luffy could recognize them as Mankey, wrestling the larger and stronger pokemon, but they weren't having much luck.   
  
"Come on! While it's distracted!" Ace shouted, charging forwards. Luffy shook himself out of it, but nodded, and jumped up with his brothers, clinging to the Arcanine's mane. Ace felt around in it as the monster growled and swiped at the creatures crawling over it, before pulling away a shiny red hard-shelled fruit. "I got it!"  
  
The Arcanine, however, decided it had enough. All at once, its fur rose up in a burst of flame as it rolled over, sending Mankey flying, but the enraged smaller Pokemon simply leaped back into the fray, ignoring the burns. The three brothers on the other hand, upon hitting the ground, kept on running. 

* * *

"Stupid!" Sabo chided.  
  
"I'm not stupid!"  
  
"The Apricorn isn't worth your life! And you, why didn't you give Ace the ball?"  
  
"Shanks gave this to me. He said to use it on a special Pokemon. On a Pokemon to be my partner, for life!" Luffy said, "I didn't like the Arcanine. Using it just to escape... it felt wrong." he looked down at it, and rolled it between his hands. He had been tempted, more than once, to simply give in and use it on one that seemed interesting, but nothing had ever really  _clicked_  for him.   
  
"...Fine."   
  
"...So how do we go about making this into an actual Pokeball?" Ace asked, tossing the red fruit up and down.   
  
"We have to find a specialist." Sabo said, looking a bit annoyed, "Which means we have to go into the city, and we'll need money."  
  
"We have money." Ace said, "They're not that expensive, right?"  
  
"They can be." Sabo said, "Either way, it's almost evening now. We should be finding something to eat for Dadan and the others."  
  
Luffy's stomach growled, "I think I saw a Sawsbuck trail while we were running earlier." the youngest brother offered.   
  
Ace smiled, "Sounds good."  
  
As the three of them headed back into the woods, aiming for the trail Luffy spotted, they could smell smoke. Without speaking, all three of them turned towards it, and followed the smell to the clearing, which was far larger than before, the trees at its edges having been burnt to a crisp and crumbled into ash.   
  
But more than that, the area was littered with the aftermath of the battle, which the Arcanine was clearly victorious. There had been nearly a dozen Mankey that they had seen attack, but now there was only three, none moving, their white fur stained pink with blood. Bits of fur and blood scattered across the clearing told them where the others likely were.  
  
Ace grinned, picking up one of them and slinging it over his back, while Sabo grabbed another. When Luffy moved in to grab his, however, he shouted, "This one's still alive!" he then took a step back as it rose to its feet, swaying uncertainly. Staring at the three of them, however, it howled and shot forward, grabbing onto the bodies of its comrades as it passed, and skidding to a halt some distance away, breathing hard.   
  
It turned a glare on the three brothers, and then began to trudge to the edge of the scorched area, at the smoldering remains of a tree. Setting the other two Mankey down, it looked at the charcoal for a few seconds, before sitting down between them.  
  
Luffy clenched his fists, "...He's all alone." he said quietly, "We led the Arcanine to his home and then they all died."  
  
"It's not our fault." Sabo said, "They could have left the tree behind and ran in the other direction."  
  
"They saved us!" Luffy said,  _"We_  would have been eaten, if they ran!"   
  
"Well it's not like we asked for help." Ace said, "...Come on, we'll leave them be."  
  
"No." Luffy said, pulling up his hat, and taking out the green ball. "HEY! MANKEY!" he shouted, drawing the attention of the creature, "Thank you for saving us!" he said, before walking closer. The Pokemon stood up, and growled at him, but Luffy just kept on advancing, until the Mankey leaped, and collided with the boy. Luffy grunted as he was forced into an impromptu wrestle with the creature, and within a few minutes, the conflict had erupted into a simple brawl, the two of them biting, scratching, kicking and hitting.   
  
Normally, a fight between a human and a Pokemon, especially a child and a Pokemon, would absolutely go in the Pokemon's favor, but the Mankey was injured from his fight, and near exhaustion. When the two broke away, covered in new bruises and scratches, Luffy's glare fell away, and he simply laughed, "I like you!" he declared, "I'm sorry your family died, but you saved my family, even if you didn't mean it. So, if you want, you can be my partner, and we can be your new one, okay?"  
  
"Graaww!" the Mankey snarled, but it didn't press on the attack. When Luffy held up the green and red Pokeball, it didn't flinch back. Taking a few steps forward, Luffy pressed it to the creature's head. The Mankey didn't fight it, and disappeared inside in a flash of light.   
  
The ball rumbled for a few seconds, before it stopped. Grinning wide, Luffy jumped into the air, "I have my first partner, Shanks!" he shouted, "I'm going to be a Pokemon Master!"   
  
Ace smiled, shaking his head, before looking to Sabo, "Well... we can't have our little brother leading the way." he tossed the Apricorn in his hand up and down, "Let's start making our own."


	2. Zoro & Kuina

"If I were born a guy..." 

"Idiot! You're telling me all this after you beat me? That's not fair! All I've ever wanted is to be as strong as you!" 

She looked up, tears still running down her face, "Zoro?"

"Is that supposed to mean if I beat you one day it won't be because I'm stronger? Doesn't that make me just look like an idiot?! Let's make a promise."

"A promise?" 

"One of us will be the strongest swordsman in the world, okay? Let's see who reaches that level first!"

She sniffed, wiping away a tear, "You idiot, you _lost_ to me, and you want to make a promise like that?"

He simply looked determined. 

She smiled, and held out her hand. "Okay. I promise." she said. 

* * *

 

Zoro woke up that morning feeling refreshed. Energized by his promise. He and Kuina would make it all the way to the top, he was sure of it.

"Zoro, something terrible's happened!"

And then all of that was taken away. 

"Kuina fell down the stairs, and died!" 

He was taken to her body, the white cloth covering her face making it seem like she could have only been sleeping. But she wasn't. "You bastard!" he cried out, shocking everyone else, who was mourning the loss of their master's daughter, "We made a promise last night! And now you think you can just run away!?" 

"Zoro!" one of the older students said, barring him from getting closer to the body, "Don't be disrespectful!" 

Their master came forwards, then, his face shockingly mild, "Zoro... humans are fragile beings."

He dropped to his knees, then, tears beginning to roll down his face, "Master? Please, give me Kuina's sword. I'm going to become the strongest swordsman in the world, using her sword."

"...I would, Zoro... but there's a problem."

"A problem?"

"Come with me." 

Zoro took one last look at Kuina's body, and sighed, getting up to follow his master deeper inside, up the stairs where she died, to Kuina's room.

Her sword was lying in its resting place in her room. But something was... different. The white sheathe had changed slightly, an intricate design spread across it where before it was plain. More than that, the guard of the sword had changed as well, becoming wider, with a blue gem set into the side. And from the handle was spread a long, blue, ribbon. 

"What happened to Wado Ichimonji?" he asked, confused.

"It happens, sometimes." his sensei said, stopping him from getting closer. "Sometimes, after a swordsman strikes someone down, their victim's spirit will enter their sword, and transform their sword into a Ghost Pokemon." he looks at Zoro, "And then their sword will turn on them." 

"D-did Kuina's sword turn on her?"

"No, I don't think so." he said, "...I believe that her own regrets have made her spirit refuse to pass on." 

"Then... _that's_ Kuina?" 

"It isn't Kuina any more." his sensei said sadly, "It's a Honedge. And it will drain the life force of anyone who touches it. I'm sorry, Zoro. I would have gladly gifted you Kuina's sword. But it's too dangerous to touch, now." he said, "Best to just let it sleep."

He stared at the Honedge. Wado Ichimonji. Kuina.

He nodded, and his sensei led him out of the room. 

But he returned later that night. 

He approached it where it rested, and bit his lip in hesitation. 

"Kuina?" he asked softly. 

The gemstone became cloudy, for a few moments, before the inkiness inside it solidified into a small black dot. A pupil. It widened, then, until it filled almost half of the gem. It blinked, staring at him. 

He looked into it, "Kuina?" he asked again. 

Was there recognition there, or was he just imagining it?

He looked at the long blue ribbon floating ethereally in the air, the new addition to the sword. 

He reached out, and touched the end of it. The ribbon split into four sections, there. It looked almost like a hand. The tendrils wrapped around his arm. 

He began to smile, before dropping to his knees. The pain was so sudden he didn't even realize it hurt until he took a moment to think about it. Mostly, he just felt weak. In fact, he had never felt weaker. It was like every bit of determination and vitality in his body were being emptied down a drain. 

"Kuina!" he growled, fighting just to keep his voice strong, "It's me, Zoro!" 

The draining didn't stop. 

"Can't you remember!?" 

It continued. 

His voice got weaker, "Don't you remember our promise?"

The eye twitched, narrowed, and while the draining continued, it got slower. More hesitant. 

"You do remember, don't you? I won't forgive you if your forgot!" he managed, before reaching out and taking the handle of the sword. He lifted it up, despite the fact his arms were so weak. He held it in front of his face, so that he could look the gemstone in the eye, "We promised! One of us would become the greatest swordsman in the world!"

The ribbon went limp, falling from where it was wrapped around his other hand. 

He breathed a sigh of relief, smiling, "There. You remember, right? I'm Zoro. You're Kuina." 

The eye wavered, becoming glassy. The ribbon lifted up again, and Zoro tensed, but he didn't drop the sword, or back off. The ribbon rose up to his face, touching it. It didn't drain him. 

It lowered then, and was held in front of him. 

He took it with the same hand he had the night before, when Kuina agreed to his promise. 

The eye sharpened, and Zoro could see the recognition in it, plain as day. 

He set her back down, and to his surprise, she levitated back up into the air, floating in front of him. The side with the eye-gem faced him head on. 

"...I thought you left me alone." he said, "I thought you ran away from our promise." 

The sword jerked forwards, the sheathed tip of it smacking into his belly, "Ow! Okay, okay, sorry. I know you didn't. Even after you died, you came back." he smiled, "You even picked up your sword, again." 

Kuina bobbed up and down, before looking conflicted. She hovered all around her room, opening drawers, lifting her sleeping mat, before going over to her desk and picking up a pen with the tendrils. She got out paper, and began to write. 

_I'm dead?_

"Yeah. Sorry. Your dad said you fell down the stairs."

_Embarrassing_ _._

_Sorry._

"Why weren't you more careful, huh?" She jerked into him again, shoving him over, "Hey, I'm just kidding."

_Where's my body? Have I been cremated yet? Did ~~sensei~~ Dad cry?_

"Your body is still downstairs." he said, "Are you sure you want to see it?"

The sword bobbed up and down, which he took for a nod. "...Alright."

* * *

 

Kuina picked up her own lifeless hand, before dropping it and hurriedly hovering back, until she bumped into a wall. 

The pen was shaky as she wrote on the notebook Zoro held out for her. 

_What am I? Why am I here? I'm dead_

"Sensei said that sometimes, a spirit will possess a sword, and it'll..."

She hovered closer, impatient.

"...it'll become a Pokemon." She clattered to the ground, and Zoro rushed to pick her up, "Kuina?!"

_Pokemon!? I'm a human! How do I go back!?_

"W-well, can you possess your body?" 

The Honedge ripped herself from his grip and floated over, taking her former hand once more in the ribbon.

She looked back at Zoro, and shook side-to-side. No, then. 

"...Then I think you're stuck." She dropped the hand of her own corpse, and floated back over. "I'm sorry." 

_What now?_

She wrote down, after they left the room behind, and had gone off to the empty training grounds some way away from the school.

"...You came back to life, to keep your promise, right?"

_I think so._

"Then we already know what we need to do." he said, resolute, "One of us will have to become the strongest swordsman in the world." 

_I can't be a swordsman. I'm a sword._

"No, you're a Pokemon."

_Pokemon can't be swordsmen either_

_"_ Says who!?"

_Don't be stupid!_

Zoro huffed, "Fine then, do you want to give up then? Am I just supposed to fight all the way to the top without you even trying to compete?"

_NO!_

"Then what do you want to do?" 

She simply hovered there for a time, ribbon hanging limp, rather than try to write anything more. 

Zoro waited, before sighing, and walking off. 

Kuina watched after him, disappointed, only to look confused when he came back, holding three wooden practice swords. He tossed one over to her, which she caught with her ribbon. 

He held out the other two in front of him, "Match number two-thousand and two." then, he attacked. He swung his swords furiously, and she reacted on instinct, deflecting them with a swing of her own practice sword. 

The two of them went back and forth, until Kuina swung with all her might, twisting in mid-air and driving her practice sword towards Zoro faster than he could react. He went flying, his wooden swords clattering to his sides. 

"Two thousand and two wins for you." he said, smiling, despite the defeat, "You're just as strong, even with just one arm." 

She dropped the wooden sword and floated over, helping him up. Then, she wrapped the ribbon around his shoulders and held him close. 

It was a bit awkward, hugging Kuina's body now that it was a sword. But he still did. 

* * *

"...You're leaving, then?" 

"I'm going to prove myself the greatest swordsman in the world." Zoro said, "Thank you for all your training." 

His teacher bowed slightly, "You were an excellent student, Zoro. And... Kuina you were as well. I have a... going away, present." the Honedge... his daughter's reincarnation, moved closer. "I want you to have this."

She then backed away, looking at the Pokeball in his hands. 

"Sensei?" Zoro asked, "What is that?" 

"A Pokeball." he said, "It can store a Pokemon inside it." 

"Kuina doesn't need it." he said, crossing his arms. She bobbed up and down emphatically. 

"She- you," he corrects, looking at the sword. Even after weeks, after the two proved to him her spirit had kept its memories, it was difficult to reconcile the eerily floating blade with his lost little girl, _"do_ need it. If you don't want someone else to catch you." 

"Aren't... Pokeballs rare?"

"They are in the Blues. But I hear in the Grand Line they can be mass-produced. And that's where you intend on going, isn't it?" 

"If that's where the strongest swordsman is." Zoro said, glancing Kuina's way, she nodded as well. 

"Then this is protection. If she's already connected to a Pokeball, no one else will be able to capture her."

Kuina stared down at the ball, before hovering forwards. Her father pressed it against the top of her hilt, and she turned into red light, getting sucked inside. It shook in his hand for several seconds, before emitting a satisfying tone, and a click. 

He handed it to Zoro. 

"Take care of it." 

"With my life." he pressed the button, then, and Kuina came back out. She pulled him into a half-hug with her ribbon, before focusing her attention back on her father. 

"I suppose this makes you a Pokemon Trainer, in addition to a swordsman." 

"I guess." Zoro said, frowning. 

"I wasn't sure whether or not Kuina would accept the first ball, so I purchased three." he said, handing two more similar Pokeballs to Zoro, all three of them marked with a red 'V' and otherwise yellow and black on the top, "Make good use of them. And even though your partners will be strong enough to fight your battles, never stop practicing your way of the sword. Understood?"

"Understood." 

"And... Kuina?"

She drew closer. 

"I love you. Thank you for coming back to us. Both of you, take care of each other. Zoro, make sure Kuina is heard. Kuina, make sure Zoro doesn't get lost." he opened his arms, taking both boy and Pokemon into his hug. "I know you'll succeed."

 

 


End file.
